<p>Husband and I are considering a kid free vacation. Husband has never been to New York. I have been once when I was 12. We have the luxury of being given a large amount of points with an awards program so we can stay somewhere pricier then then we normally would. Suggestions? The awards program can be used at a large selection of hotels.
The best fare’s we are finding fly into JFK. Would it be crazy to have a flight out on a friday morning at 10 am.
We would have 3 full days. What are the must do’s?
I searched and found the dining thread and will review it.
Thanks</p>
<p>If your awards program covers any of the hotels along Central Park South, or Fifth Avenue near the Park - that’s where I would stay as far as the price-y category goes.</p>
<p>If you have immigrant ancestors, I think the Ellis Island trip is worth it. Gives you a ride to look at Lady Liberty as well.</p>
<p>Tell us what kind of things you like to do - walk? shop? museums? theatre?</p>
<p>Through the dining thread I was able to find the links from an old thread and found some great information.
Jmmom- Just offhand some of the hotels listed. Sofitel, N.Y. Hemsley, Muse, Mansfield, Hotel Roger Williams, Essex house, Kimberly, The Iroquois, Algonquin, Intercontinental Barclay, Morgans, A few different Affinia, Doubletree Metro, Sheraton Tower, Sheraton Manhattan.
I like museums, husband tolerates a few. I like shopping, he doesn’t. Walking is good. He will tolerate theatre. His ideal vacation is not NYC. He would prefer sailing. As far as food goes- he doesn’t eat anything out of the ordinary. No pork, seafood. He does love ethnic food. Indian, Chinese, Italian.
My ideal travel companion for this trip would be a girlfriend. But husband is being a good sport and letting me pick this trip. Whenever we take a trip he prefers sailing. So it’s my turn.</p>
<p>Two “must do’s” for New York City:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Bring a LOT of money. It’s not a cheap city.</p></li>
<li><p>See The Met art museum.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>You might want to go over to <a href=“http://www.nycvisit.com%5B/url%5D”>www.nycvisit.com</a>. (Hope the moderators will leave that up; it’s a NYC government site–not private.) Find out if anything special is going on when you’re going to be here. </p>
<p>Definitely take the Circle Line boat. It’s hokey and touristy but really is the most relaxing way to get a good tour of the City.</p>
<p>Museums–check to see if there’s anything special on. If I’d suggest one of the following: the Met, going to the Egytian section–it’s AMAZING and people who really aren’t “into” art still enjoy it; the Museum of the City of New York, which is just what it sounds like, a museum which focuses on the history of the City; the Frick–which is a wonderful small collection of art; it covers a lot of different periods.</p>
<p>The UN–tour is sort of interesting. </p>
<p>If either of you is artsy/craftsy, check out Pearl Paint in Chinatown and the food markets in Chinatown just for fun. You can then eat in Chinatown or what’s left of Little Italy. Walk around Greenwich Village and see some of NYU, Washington Square Park. </p>
<p>If the weather is good, Central Park, especially on the weekend. </p>
<p>Ground Zero. (Then go to Century 21 to shop.) </p>
<p>Empire State Building</p>
<p>Grand Central station–the new food court is also a good place to get a quick reasonably-priced lunch in midtown. Look up!!! (the ceiling is interesting.) Vanderbilt Hall (part of Grand Central) often has interesting things going on. If the weather is good, walk the short distance to St. Bart’s on Park Ave. It has moderately priced lunches on most days and you can eat outside if it’s nice. </p>
<p>Rockefeller Center–maybe do the NBC guided tour, if you like that sort of thing. St. Patrick’s (which is right near it.) </p>
<p>If you are willing to venture outside midtown–go up and see St. John the Divine and Columbia University.</p>
<p>mom60, </p>
<p>You’re in for a treat! We visit the city several times a year and lived there for a while, too. There are many nice places to stay. We have stayed at the Renaissance Hotel on 7th Ave. at 48th for about 8 or 9 years and think it’s one of the best in the city. The staff is excellent and the service can’t be beat. The rooms are spacious (which is unusual in NYC). It has an excellent restaurant, a nice bar, great room service, a business center, internet in the rooms, fitness center, etc. It’s also centrally located so you can either walk to just about everything - theatre, Central Park, Rockefeller Center, 5th Ave., restaurants, Lincoln Center, museums, etc. Or you can easily hail a cab any time of the day or night, or if you’re adventurous on your first trip, there’s a subway stop right outside the front door.</p>
<p><a href=“http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/NYCRT[/url]”>http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/NYCRT</a></p>
<p>For museums, here’s a site for you to have a look at:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.ny.com/museums/[/url]”>http://www.ny.com/museums/</a></p>
<p>My personal favorite is the Met. It is not to be missed! It’s huge and fabulous and an entire day there won’t allow you time to see everything but go anyway! :)</p>
<p>One of our favorite places to visit is the SouthStreet Seaport:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.southstreetseaport.com/[/url]”>http://www.southstreetseaport.com/</a></p>
<p>Shopping, restaurants, street performers, boat tours, wonderful views of the Brooklyn Bridge, and the best Christmas shop I’ve ever seen, if you like to collect beautiful ornaments like I do! </p>
<p>If you go to visit Rockefeller Center, stop at Morrell’s Wine Bar and Cafe for great food and the most amazing collection of wine in the city. It’s right across the street from where the skating rink is, as well as NBC studios where the Today Show is broadcast. </p>
<p><a href=“http://www.morrellwinebar.com/winebar/index.asp[/url]”>http://www.morrellwinebar.com/winebar/index.asp</a></p>
<p>Some of our favorite places to eat:</p>
<p>Westway Diner at 614 9th Ave. between 43rd and 44th. This is the REAL Seinfeld diner where Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David ‘created’ the show.</p>
<p>The Playwright Restaurant which is a couple of blocks up from the Renaissance between Broadway and 7th Ave. There are a few in the city. </p>
<p>The Cafe Edison which is in the Edison Hotel, Broadway and 47th, is a great place for breakfast or a quick lunch. People-watching is the order of the day there, and you’ll almost always see some Broadway actors.</p>
<p>Carnegie Deli is at 854 7th Ave. Great and typical New York deli.</p>
<p>Lattanzi is at 341 W. 46th on Restaurant Row. Great food and service. Many good ones on Restaurant Row.</p>
<p><a href=“http://restaurantrownyc.com/media/restaurantrow.html[/url]”>http://restaurantrownyc.com/media/restaurantrow.html</a></p>
<p>That should get you started with some ideas! If you want any theatre information about current shows, let me know. I was there a couple of weeks ago and have seen most everything which is currently playing. Enjoy!</p>
<p>Comfortable shoes are key to your survival. You’ll never walk so much in your life, and it’s all hard, hard pavement. Many years ago I went to NYC with my husband for a combination business/pleasure trip, so we’d sightsee in the morning, have a business appointment or lunch, more sightseeing, then maybe a business dinner – and no chance to get back to where we were staying to change. The first day, the woman we had the first meeting wit looked at my nice, dressy, go-to-meeting shoes, and said, “Go to Barnes and Noble and get a cloth bookbag to keep your spare shoes in, wear your walking shoes, and change them just before your next appointment.” Lifesaving advice!</p>
<p>Another to add to your list of places to visit – the Cloisters, brought over stone by stone from Europe and reassembled, home to the unicorn tapestries, and a wonderful break from the hustle of the rest of the city.</p>
<p>If it starts to rain, Koreans sell you umbrellas for five bucks.</p>
<p>If your husband is really into the nautical theme, you could time your visit to coincide with Fleet Week (I think it’s in May), visit the Intrepid museum, and the Darwin exhibit at Museum of Natural History (learn about Darwin’s voyage on the Beagle) - I think it ends in May.</p>
<p>Thank you all.
I am getting excited.
Coureur- expensive we are prepared for. If we are lucky the hotel and airfare will be almost totally covered by the points we have.
Alwaysamom- it looks like the Renaissance is not available when we are going with the points. We would like something nice but not stuffy. Nice bedding and a bathtub is a requirement.
Moominmama- years ago when I worked in downtown LA I wore tennis shoes on the bus with my suit and changed once I got to work. We now live in a city that is so casual that my husband only wears long pants for weddings, bar mitzvah and funerals. He is definitely not a city dresser.
First order of business is booking the hotel and flight. And foremost confirming the sweet dear young woman who has graciously agreed to stay with the dreaded male junior son. We keep telling each other how much trouble can he get into in 5 days as long as there is school.
Lefthanddog- We are planning on the first week of June.</p>
<p>The Met is terrific, not to be missed. But set aside three hours at some point to go to the Frick (not far away). </p>
<p>Our first trip to NYC was for a college trip. It was a blast, even if the NYC colleges didn’t fare so well on D’s list. I’d like to get there every year or two. I now understand people who are bi. Coastal, that is.</p>
<p>TheDad- you know where I live. We have settled into the rut of so many who live here of rarely leaving.</p>
<p>Many many years ago, I stayed at the Sofitel. It is French-owned so it has some French touches. It also tries to cater to an international clientele. I was very impressed to see a European man at the counter switching effortlessly from speaking Japanese to a guest to French to another. I’ve not stayed at the Essex House, but it is located in a very central place, in fact, across a very nice restaurant whose name, alas, escapes me.</p>
<p>The Sheratons have <em>really</em> nice beds. A few years ago I stayed at a Sheraton on the NJ side of the Hudson (Weehawken?). The ferry service stopped at the hotel and took us right to Manhattan. Price was right too!</p>
<p>If I had the option of the Algonquin - which it appears you do - I would stay there just for the history of it. <a href=“Finest Luxury - Hotel Near Times Square | The Algonquin Hotel”>Finest Luxury - Hotel Near Times Square | The Algonquin Hotel; Apparently guests are quite fond of the beds.</p>
<p>I like to just walk parts of the City which aren’t usually on the tourist route - eg, Upper West Side. Walk through Central Park to somewhere about the 70’s, then go west to Columbus Avenue and stroll 10 or so blocks (north). The shops/restaurants/people watching will be different from what you see elsewhere.</p>
<p>There are boats (someone help me remember - rowboats?) in Central Park. It’s not sailing, but your H might like it. Since he’s not a museum type, go to the Met and spend just a little time (5th Ave at 82nd) for one exhibit or whatever and then go for a relaxing boat ride/walk in the Park. You could walk the Upper West Side, see something at the Met and spend time in Central Park in one part of one day. Other days could be downtown for Ellis Island/Circle Line or other field trips such as Cloisters (but if he’s not a museum or garden type, that might not be for him either). A ball game at Shea or Yankee Stadium is an option.</p>
<p>Chinatown and Little Italy are downtown. If you haven’t got your restaurants all picked from earlier cc threads, I’d subscribe online to, or buy, Zagat - so easy to consult for the exact thing you’ve got a yen for/location you happen to be in, etc.</p>
<p>Pray for good weather and follow the shoe advice. My only bad walks in Manhattan have been when it rained and I didn’t have a back-up pair of shoes. So plan for that contingency.</p>
<p>Jmmom- I am narrowing the list down:
The Algonquin
Essex House
Sofitel
Intercontinental Barclay
The Iroquois
Crowne Plaza Manhattan
So many great ideas!
He has had plenty of sailing vacations so he doesn’t need boats on this trip.
He is really a good sport and will do whatever I ask of him. Even if it means more then one museum. As long as I don’t make him go to any restaurant that he needs to wear a tie and jacket.</p>
<p>People wear ties and jackets to restaurants any more? :)</p>
<p>Jmmom- I don’t know! We are country bumpkins and live where you can wear shorts to just about anywhere. A place where when my husband had jury duty the court puts out a notice that proper courtroom attire is long pants.</p>
<p>Sorry–long post!</p>
<p>This topic (things to do in NY) was discussed previously and I tried to find it in the archives (no luck). I did save my favorite posts from that thread and used the suggestions given (and some other suggestions) to have a perfectly wonderful, fun-filled 4 days in NY at the end of March. </p>
<p>We stayed at the Sheraton on 7th avenue (between 52nd and 53rd). Rooms were small for the price, but the location can’t be beat! It’s right on one subway stop and close to 2 or 3 others. Walking distance to Times Square(we walked down to Times Square a number of times at night–the place is electric at night), Broadway plays, MoMA, Rockefeller Center, Central Park and a lot of other wonderful places. Any hotel in that general vicinity will work great.</p>
<p>We came in through JFk–taxi cab ride to the hotel is a flat rate $45 plus tolls and tip–dropped the bags off at the hotel and went to eat a corned beef sandwich at Carnegie Deli (which is within easy walking distance from the hotel). Fabulous corned beef!! Huge portions–you guys could probably split one. I didn’t try their cheesecake there–wish I would have.</p>
<p>Next day, went to MoMA (again, easy walking distance). Went to a Broadway play at night (Mamma Mia–what can I say? I love ABBA music). Play was within easy walking distance. We ordered tickets before we left home using Entertainment Link for discount tickets (a tip garnered from our CC parents). Picked them up at will call window. Very convenient–didn’t have to spend any time in any lines. </p>
<p>Went on a day-long tour of NY using Marvelous Manhattan Tours. The guide, Stephen Duer, came highly recommended. See <a href=“http://www.kingofnyc.com%5B/url%5D”>www.kingofnyc.com</a>. The bus was more of a very comfortable motor coach (15-20 people on the tour) and the guy was pretty entertaining and informative. A bit pricey at $99 a person, but the personal attention was worth it. You get out for sightseeing at 3 or 4 places, so you aren’t cooped up on bus all day. We ate lunch at Katz’s Deli (of Harry met Sally fame) and I had a mouthwatering beef brisket sandwich!</p>
<p>Ate dinner that night at Carmine’s, an Italian restaurant near Times Square (again, walking distance) recommended by a CC poster. Wonderful dinner–and the portions were HUGE. 2 main dishes fed 6 of us. The Titanic dessert that we ordered would be too big for the two of you–it took all 6 of us to finish it. We called ahead for reservations from home earlier in the week. Check their website for info–they don’t accept reservations from parties less than six covering certain times.</p>
<p>Went to the Guggenheim–a smaller museum (and easier on the feet). It’s not that far, but we took the subway. Later that night, went to the Empire State Building Observation Deck to see the City at night (took the subway). Well worth the trip (night view was great–but cold), but the lines can be daunting. Since $$ isn’t a consideration, I’d suggest buying the express ticket and save yourself from the long lines. </p>
<p>Went to the Met on the Tuesday (took a taxi–$10 for a Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride facsimile) that the Hatshepsut Travelling Exhibit opened. Wonderful Egyptian artifacts–only 3 museums will have this show–De Young in SF, Met in NYC and the big museum in Fort Worth. Saw more than I can remember, but missed a lot too. The Met is closed on Mondays, so factor that into your plans.</p>
<p>Had cheesecake at Lindy’s, New York Style pizza at Ray’s, a cheap hot dog at Papaya King (great dog, but papaya juice turned out not to be so hot–mango would have probably been better).</p>
<p>Things I didn’t get to do (because of the lack of time) but will plan to do them on the next trip:</p>
<p>See the Frick Museum (art housed in a small setting of a personal residence); </p>
<p>see more of the Met (one of my tripmates had wonderful photos of Tiffany stained glass in the American exhibit–but I never got over to the American stuff); </p>
<p>have a cold hot chocolate at Serendipity 3 as suggested by a CC poster(the wait was 2 hours long and we decided that was nuts–but my daughter went later when the wait was only 1 hour, ordered the cold hot chocolate, and said that it was worth the wait);</p>
<p>do more exploring downtown and other areas (except for the NYC tour, we pretty much stayed midtown);</p>
<p>go to a concert in Carnegie Hall;</p>
<p>eat at Ellen’s Stardust Diner on Broadway (one of my daughters went and said that although the food was so-so, the atmosphere was so fun–the waiters and waitresses belt out show tunes);</p>
<p>eat again at Katz’s Deli.</p>
<p>Have a great time!!</p>
<p>The airtrain now runs from JFK to Jamaica in about 8 minutes and the cost is $5. </p>
<p><a href=“http://www.mta.info/mta/airtrain.htm[/url]”>http://www.mta.info/mta/airtrain.htm</a></p>
<p>Once in Jamaica, you can either jump on mass transit (E train which goes down the 8th avenue line in manhattan) or take the Long island rail road (about 17 minutes to midtown)</p>
<p>attaching a subway map</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/nyct/maps/submap.htm[/url]”>http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/nyct/maps/submap.htm</a></p>
<p>long island railroad map</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/lirr/html/lirrmap.htm[/url]”>http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/lirr/html/lirrmap.htm</a></p>
<p>Even though you only staying 3 days, get unlimited metro cards ($7 a day for fun passes or 24 for a 7 day unlimited) as you can get anywhere you want around manhattan on the subway or bus vs. spending all of your money in cabs and being tied up in traffic (save the cab fare for late in the evening going back to your hotel, but definitely use mass transit during the day).</p>